35 Random Acts Of Kindness Your Family Can Do This Holiday Season

November 29, 2016 by 5 Comments

The past few days we’ve all been focused on buying. From Christmas decor to Christmas gifts, there has been so much stuff that we “needed”. (Was I the only one who caved and bought the Instant Pot because everyone in their Facebook thread was raving about it?!)

Now that Black Friday and Cyber Monday are over we’ve come to Giving Tuesday. A day to give back, do something nice for others and give to our favorite charities. I wrote a post a couple weeks ago about five charities we support over the holidays and if you search #GivingTuesday on social media today I’m sure you will find dozens more you can donate to.

Giving money is great and I hope that you will all make a donation to a favorite charity, but I also wanted to share 35 ways that you can get your kids involved in doing random acts of kindness. Let’s all pick one to do today and brighten up someone’s day!

1) Leave a kind note in an unexpected place (like the fitting room of a store or a book in the library)

2) Hold the door open for someone

3) Buy a dozen flowers and pass them out to people

4) Rake a neighbor’s leaves

5) Leave something special in your mailbox for the person who delivers your mail

6) Bake someone cookies “just because”

7) Offer to help someone with their grocery bags

8) Send a note to a loved one telling them what you love about them

9) Buy the coffee/meal for the person behind you in the drive-thru

10) Have your kids make cards and then bring them to a nursing home

11) Smile at someone who seems overwhelmed and ask if they need help

12) Pay for someone else’s gas when you are at the gas station

13) Leave a couple dollars in the Redbox movie container when you return it

14) Send a gift card to someone anonymously via email (Even a $5 gift card can brighten a day!)

15) Leave a small gift on your neighbor’s porch and then ding dong ditch

16) Offer to babysit a friend’s kids- for free- so they can have a date night or go to the store solo

17) Bring some blankets, hats and gloves to a homeless shelter

18) Leave an extra large tip for the server when you go out to eat

19) Put change in the salvation army bucket

20) Offer to return a cart for someone after they load groceries into their car

21) Leave pennies on the ground (heads up!) for kids to find

22) Let someone in front of you when you are sitting in traffic

23) Shovel your neighbor’s driveway

24) Give up your seat for someone

25) Drop off food at a food pantry

26) Pay for someone else’s groceries

27) Give a genuine compliment to a stranger

28) Visit a nursing home

29) Pay the toll for the person behind you

30) Buy extra cat food or dog food and drop it off at an animal shelter

31) Say thank you to the folks you come into contact with as you are out and about

32) Volunteer your time

33) Gather items you don’t need any more and drop them off at Salvation Army or Goodwill

34) When you receive great customer service ask to speak to a manager and let them know

35) Let someone go in front of you in line

What ideas do you have? I’d love to hear about Random Acts Of Kindness that your family has done!

Filed Under: Causes/ Charities Tagged With: , ,

Our Favorite Christmas Pajamas: Buy A Pair, Give A Pair

November 21, 2016 by 20 Comments

Disclosure: This is a sponsored post but all thoughts are my own.

One of my favorite purchases every holiday season is a set of matching pajamas for my boys. Each year, on Christmas Eve, they wear their new pajamas when they go to sleep and wake up to celebrate Christmas morning in their festive jammies. (Truth be told, they pretty much lounge around all Christmas day in them!)

We’ve had Christmas pajamas every year and this year I found the cutest pair at Carter’s. With close to 900 styles, including 1-piece, 2-piece, 4-piece, and gown options in cotton, flannel and fleece in sizes newborn to 12 years, parents and gift-givers are sure to find the perfect PJs at Carter’s to outfit all the little ones on their holiday gift lists. I was thrilled to find out that Carter’s is doing something special for Giving Tuesday, which is November 29th, because I love supporting companies that give back. I also now have a reason to head back to the store and get another pair of pajamas for our New Year’s Eve celebration at home :)

Carter’s is partnering with Pajama Program to help further its mission of delivering new, warm pajamas to children in need. This year’s campaign aims to surpass $2 million worth of pajama donations. For every Carter’s pajama purchased at one of Carter’s 600+ US retail stores or online at www.Carters.com on Giving Tuesday (November 29), Carter’s will donate one pajama to children in need, up to 100,000.

If you’ve never heard of the Pajama Program, it’s a great charity. Pajama Program provides new pajamas and new books to children in need nationwide, many of whom are waiting to be adopted. These children live in group homes, shelters and temporary housing facilities and are shuffled often from one place to another. Many of them have been abandoned, abused or neglected. Most of these children have never enjoyed the simple comfort of having a parent tuck them in at bedtime with warm, clean pajamas and a bedtime story. Some of the children are living with their families below the poverty level, in desperate need of food, clothing and shelter. These two simple gifts of pajamas and books let the children know that someone cares – sometimes these are the only new things they have ever received.

Will you join me in supporting this great cause and giving back on Giving Tuesday?

Filed Under: Causes/ Charities, Christmas Tagged With: , , ,

Giving Tuesday: 5 Unique No-Cost Ways To Give Back

November 27, 2012 by 3 Comments

World Homeless Day

Today has been designated as “Giving Tuesday“. It’s the Tuesday after two huge shopping days (Black Friday & Cyber Monday) and a day to give back to others. I’d like to share 5 creative ways that you can give back to others. These 5 ideas from Call 2 Recycle won’t cost you a penny but will greatly bless another.

1.       Offer a Veteran a Ride

The Disabled American Veterans’ Voluntary Services Program provides numerous opportunities for men and women of all ages to help make a difference in the lives of disabled veterans: http://dav.org/volunteers/

2.       Spend time at a Shelter

You don’t have to be an animal expert to help out at your community’s shelter. You just need to have the time and desire to lend a helping hand: http://www.aspca.org/adoption/help-your-local-shelter.aspx

3.       Help safeguard the environment

It is as simple as recycling batteries. The kind that get recharged, like the ones in laptops and cell phones, contain mercury and lead, heavy metals that can contaminate the air, topsoil, and water if they’re tossed in the regular garbage.  Call2Recycle has partnered with major recycling facilities in the United States and Canada to process and reclaim materials from rechargeable batteries and cellphones. You can find a Call2Recycle recycling location here: http://www.call2recycle.org/locator/

4.       Declutter and Donate

You might not think so, but you can donate your old running shoes (they’ll recycle them!), same with your old mattress, and much more: http://www.aarp.org/money/budgeting-saving/info-10-2010/savings_challenge_give_your_stuff_to_a_good_cause.html

5.       Offer to babysit for free, it could be a friend or relative

There are a few things you can do to help out families in your neighborhood and even your own that would be much appreciated: http://www.kidsforcommunity.org/family-community-services.html

Filed Under: Causes/ Charities, Helping Others Tagged With: , , , ,